Obama says Gen. McChrystal showed ‘poor judgment’ in critical magazine interview
By APTuesday, June 22, 2010
Obama says war general’s showed ‘poor judgment’
WASHINGTON — President Barack Obama says he wants to hear directly from Gen. Stanley McChrystal before deciding whether to fire the Afghanistan war commander over a disparaging magazine story that has enraged the White House and threatened to undermine the administration.
Obama said McChrystal and his aides showed “poor judgment.”
In his first comments on the matter, Obama said Tuesday that he would meet with McChrystal at the White House on Wednesday and that Defense Secretary Robert Gates will be meeting with the commander as well.
“I think it’s clear that the article in which he and his team appeared showed a poor — showed poor judgment,” the president said, surrounded by members of his Cabinet at the close of their meeting. “But I also want to make sure that I talk to him directly before I make any final decisions.”
As the media were being ushered out of the room quickly, Obama stopped them to make more comments and try to put the focus on the troops.
“I want everybody to keep in mind what our central focus is — and that is success in making sure that al-Qaida and its affiliates cannot attack the United States and its allies,” Obama said.
“And we’ve got young men and women there who are making enormous sacrifices, families back home who are making enormous sacrifices,” he said. “And so whatever decision that I make with respect to Gen. McChrystal — or any other aspect of Afghan policy — is determined entirely on how I can make sure that we have a strategy that justifies the enormous courage and sacrifice that those men and women are making over there and that ultimately makes this country safer.”
